Accidental creativity

One day a man lay in the middle of the street, his ear to the pavement. A passerby stopped, leaned closed and listens as the man reported: “Red Toyota, mag wheels, young driver and two doors I think. License Plate ZFE-784.

Impressed, the passerby said, “Wow! You can tell that just by listening to the pavement?” The man on the street replied: “Not really. But that’s the description of the car that just ran me down.”

This man was not skillful, he just happened to be a victim of an accident.

Not all accidents in business are bad, many accidents turned out to becoming winning products and services in the market place. Consider this story as told by Guy Kawasaki in a book he authored some years ago, “Rules for Revolutionaries.”

Kawasaki has given a term to discovery of products by accidents. He calls it “Entre-manure.” “Entre-Manure, “ says Kawasaki, “is the result of an entrepreneur stumbling into an unintended consequence (for example-manure) that is more valuable than what he was originally looking for.  

I just gave a talk to the wonderful people of DuPont and I can’t help remembering the story regarding their product that is a subject of study in Kawasaki’s book. Kawasaki says: “Take Teflon, for example. Most of us think of it as the nonstick coating for pots and pans, but the DuPont scientist who discovered it in 1938 was hardly looking to improve life in the kitchen.

The scientist was Roy Plunkett. He was working on a project to create a new type of Freon-a chemical used as a refrigerant-that would not infringe on another company’s patent. He did not intend to create a new compound for pots and pans. When Plunkett discovered this new material, he did the right thing: He remained curious about the results and conducted more chemical tests on it. He didn’t ignore what happened because it wasn’t what he wanted. When he couldn’t get any of the basic reagents to react with this mystery material, he concluded that his process caused polymerization (which means many simple molecules of one type combining one long chain).

He sent some of the material to DuPont’s Central Research Department, where they noticed how slick and chemically inert the new material was. The outbreak of World War II and the project to build an atomic bomb pushed Plunkett’s discovery into service. It was used in the manufacturing process of the radioactive isotope of uranium and also molded into nose cones for proximity bombs. More than a decade after the end of the war, DuPont was able to manufacture Teflon cheaply enough for use in consumer goods.  

The discovery and use of Teflon teaches three lessons:

1. Be curious about unintended findings.

2. Establish a company atmosphere that encourages seemingly unapplied research and discovery.

3. Stick with a discovery and it may yield important commercial products.

When I was with the apparel industry where every product or service is just as good as the previous hit, I had to keep on coming up with new ideas and new designs in order to survive. I see a product I put it on the drawing boards, source for the right fabric, formulate the right kind of washing and felt for sure that it will sell and it does not. And then something goes wrong with the fabric, or the formula wasn’t right in the washing process and then we’ll discover that the accidental product carries potential and subsequently becomes a big hit.

It’s the same thing with advertising. The layouts were superbly done. The photographer and the model understood each other. Then we take a lot of random shots and guess what happened? All those accidental photos turned out to be better than the pre-planned ones. So accidents are really blessings under cover.

This is why I have a confession to make. Every time I set my eyes and my heart out to do something and what happens turn out to be something else, instead of fretting and whining and groaning about it I say a quick prayer. I quickly remember what Paul says in the Book of Romans. “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.” I don’t complain, I trust but I make sure I learn and move on. You should too. 

(Francis Kong will be the lead trainer for the Dr. John Maxwell’s “Developing the Leader Within You” leadership program this January 28-29 at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel. For further inquiries contact Inspire Leadership Consultancy Inc. 632-6872614 or 09178511115)